Hoppe won 51 world titles between 1906 and 1952. He was also known for various long-standing high runs, including scoring 2,000 contiguous points in straight rail, 622 points in 18.2 balkline, and a run of 25 points in three-cushion. He once made a tournament average of 1.333, a world record (at that time, but since broken).

Hoppe published his first book, Thirty Years of Billiards, in 1925, and followed this up many years later with the introductory work, Billiards As It Should Be Played, in 1941. Hoppe's peculiar style of stroke was a result of his career as a child prodigy. He barely reached the table and had to stand on a box. In Billiards As It Should Be Played Hoppe emphatically advised players not to use his way of directing the cue.

After winning the world title in 1952, Hoppe retired from title play and became a goodwill ambassador for the sport by conducting a series of exhibition matches. Hoppe may have been the only billiards player to ever put on an exhibition in the White House.[7] He performed before President Wiliam Taft in 1911.[8]

He was ranked number 1 on the Billiards Digest 50 Greatest Players of the Century.[9]

^"Names make news". Time Magazine (Time) LXX (17). October 21, 1957. Retrieved May 2, 2009. Expressing regret at what has happened to his favorite game ("It's down now where bowling used to be"), William Frederick (Willie) Hoppe (rhymes with poppy), former world champion of three-cushion billiards, celebrated his 70th birthday in Miami retirement.|first1= missing |last1= in Authors list (help)